Chapter 4 - The Fortress and the Fire
The ballroom was secure, but it wasn't safe.
Luca didn't scream at Elias. He didn't execute him in front of his daughter.
He merely looked at his head of security, a giant of a man named Marcus.
"Take Elias to the lower levels of the estate," Luca commanded. "If he speaks, break his jaw. I will deal with him tonight."
Elias didn't fight. He knew it was useless. The panic in his eyes was the only confession Luca needed for now.
Marcus dragged him away.
Luca turned back to me. His demeanor softened, though the lethal edge in his eyes remained.
"Miss Carter. You are not going back to your apartment tonight."
It wasn't a request.
"I have a cat," I said stupidly, the shock of the evening finally catching up to my brain.
A faint, ghost of a smile touched Luca's lips. It made him look devastatingly human.
"We will send a team to retrieve your cat. But right now, whoever ordered Elias to make that call—or if Elias acted alone—means there is a loose end in my organization. You are that loose end. You are coming with us."
Dr. Benton stood up. "Luca, Sophia needs rest. Her muscles are in spasms."
"She rests at home," Luca said firmly. He looked down at his daughter. "Can you let go of Hannah, piccola? Let Marcus carry you to the car?"
Sophia clung to me tighter. "No. Hannah carries me. Or I walk."
She couldn't walk. Her legs were trembling uncontrollably.
"I've got her," I said, ignoring the sharp pain in my knees.
I stood up, lifting the seven-year-old into my arms. She was heavier than she was three years ago, but she felt exactly the same.
Luca walked beside me, his hand hovering near my back, protective, guiding me through the service elevator and down to the underground parking garage.
A fleet of armored black SUVs waited.
We drove in silence through the stormy Chicago night.
The Moretti Estate was not a house; it was a fortress built on the edge of Lake Michigan. High stone walls, iron gates, and armed guards patrolling the perimeter with dogs.
Inside, the house was a masterpiece of modern art and cold marble.
It felt empty.
They set us up in a guest suite that was larger than my entire apartment building.
Sophia refused to let the maids change her. She only let me help her out of her ruined satin dress and into a soft pair of pajamas.
I sat on the edge of her massive canopy bed, rubbing a heated ointment Dr. Benton provided onto her tired, shaking legs.
"Does it hurt?" I asked softly.
"A little," Sophia admitted, her eyelids drooping. "But I don't care. I found you."
"You did," I whispered, kissing her forehead. "You're a very brave girl."
She fell asleep within minutes, her hand gripping my apron strings.
I didn't realize Luca was standing in the doorway until a floorboard creaked.
He had taken off his tuxedo jacket and unbuttoned his collar. He held two glasses of amber liquid.
He walked in, his footsteps silent, and handed me a glass.
"Drink," he said gently. "It will stop your hands from shaking."
I took a sip. The whiskey burned my throat but warmed my stomach.
"She hasn't slept this peacefully since her mother died," Luca said, his voice raw.
I looked up at him. "The accident?"
"Yes. My wife, Elena, was driving. They said it was black ice." He paused, his jaw tightening. "But Elias was in charge of the vehicles. Elias intercepted your call. I am beginning to realize the black ice was a convenient excuse."
My breath hitched. "He tried to kill them?"
"Me," Luca corrected, staring into his glass. "I was supposed to be in that car. At the last minute, I took a different vehicle. Elena took Sophia to a doctor's appointment in my sedan."
The horror of it washed over me.
"You saved my daughter," Luca said, stepping closer. "You dove into a frozen river. You bled for her. And then my own people threatened your life."
He knelt beside the bed, bringing his face level with mine.
"I owe you a debt I can never repay, Hannah Carter. But I swear on my life, no one will ever threaten you again."
May you like
His eyes were dark, intense, and filled with a dangerous kind of gratitude.
For the first time in three years, I felt entirely safe.
